A lawsuit filed against the Santa Barbara Unified School District, Santa Barbara Charter School, and County Superintendent of Schools Susan Salcido isn’t seeking damages. Instead, it’s asking for accountability.
"These public officials have not done what the Constitution and the education code say they must do to provide safe schools, safe places for the children in the schools," said Barry Cappello with Cappello & Noël LLP Trial Lawyers.
The lawsuit filed in September comes after former Santa Barbara Charter School teacher Steven Schapansky was charged with two felonies and 70 misdemeanor counts. The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office says he unlawfully recorded minors in changing rooms with hidden cameras over the course of six years.
Officials say Schapansky skipped his arraignment and a warrant is still active for his arrest. He has not entered a plea.
KSBY News reporter Juliet Lemar spoke with Elsa Granados, Executive Director of STESA, about how electronic surveillance can impact children.
"It makes people afraid because they were in a space where they trusted. In this instance, they were at a school," Granados explained.
STESA, which stands for Standing Together to End Sexual Assault, works to help victims of sexual crimes. Granados says the market for images of minors is a billion-dollar industry.
"And it's not something that you can only use locally. It can be spread nationally and internationally," Granados said.
Cappello is representing two of the alleged victims and their parents. He says the suit seeks a court order requiring safety plans, facility inspections, and monitoring to prevent the illegal recording of minors and ensure safeguards are implemented. He also says the sheriff’s office is still investigating whether Schapansky distributed anything and if so, how.
In a statement, Superintendent Salcido said, "The County Superintendent of Schools does not extend to charter school personnel, facilities, or day-to-day operations and that under California law, charter schools act independently as a separate legal entity."
Capello disagrees.
"It is her job to do this. They're supposed to have a safety plan, and they're supposed to monitor the schools," Capello said.
According to the California educational code outlined in the lawsuit, the superintendent is authorized to monitor operations at each school in the county, including charter schools.
Santa Barbara Unified School District officials said in a statement, “It is incumbent on our whole District community to look out for our students and create safe learning environments.”
Santa Barbara Charter School declined to comment.
"Government officials, they've got to say, you know, the buck stops with me. We should have done more. We're going to do more," Capello said.
